Grossman says Coakley taking 'rose garden' approach on gun laws

Sunday

Apr 20, 2014 at 10:00 AM

As gubernatorial candidate Steven Grossman and gun owner advocate Jim Wallace volleyed gun safety arguments back and forth on the State House steps, Grossman said Thursday the empty podium set up with Democratic rival Martha Coakley's name on it “speaks volumes.”

Andy Metzger/State House News Service

As gubernatorial candidate Steven Grossman and gun owner advocate Jim Wallace volleyed gun safety arguments back and forth on the State House steps, Grossman said Thursday the empty podium set up with Democratic rival Martha Coakley’s name on it “speaks volumes.”

Grossman supports limiting gun purchases to one per month per person, a proposal offered early this session by Gov. Deval Patrick. Coakley has said she opposes that change in gun laws, and has held a wide lead over Grossman and four other Democrats in polling to date in the governor's race.

“If you want to adopt a rose garden strategy, fine, but I don’t think that’s the way to approach the people of this state. People want a decisive governor,” Grossman told reporters after the afternoon debate.

“This is a time for bold, imaginative ideas. Some people may agree; they may disagree. But I’m putting them out there because I think they make good common sense and I think Martha is demonstrating a timidity that the people of Massachusetts frankly will not respond positively to in the fullness of time.”

“Steve Grossman's stunt today once again shows a lack of understanding of real public safety issues. He continues to show a willingness to use these issues to try to score cheap political points,” Foley said in a statement.

Set design was a critical element of Thursday’s political theater on the sun-drenched State House steps.

There are five Democrats running for governor, including Juliette Kayyem, Joe Avellone and Don Berwick, as well as Republican nominee Charlie Baker, and two independents, Evan Falchuk and Jeff McCormick, yet only one additional podium was set up with Coakley’s name and title on it.

Grossman said the attorney general has a “special obligation” as the top law enforcement officer and noted that she has stated a position in opposition to the “one gun” proposal.

“I don’t get how the chief law enforcement officer in the state – who says gun safety laws, one gun a month, would have no effect in any way, shape or form when the facts prove otherwise – why she couldn’t come here today and stand with Jim and me and have a thoughtful, commonsense conversation about the impact of gun safety laws, public safety and how these are intertwined,” said Grossman, the state treasurer, during a civil forum with an ideological opponent.

While cited as a priority by many lawmakers, gun safety legislation so far has not emerged for votes within the Legislature this session as a July 31 deadline for major legislation looms.

The executive director of Gun Owners Action League, Wallace said all gubernatorial candidates will be invited to a roundtable discussion of gun laws, and Grossman said he would attend.

Wallace scoffed at the idea that he attended the event to defend Coakley’s record on guns, which Grossman’s campaign had suggested.

“If you look at her track record with us, unfortunately she’s pretty much ignored the plight of lawful gun owners since she’s been in office,” said Wallace Thursday.

A GOAL statement last week in response to a Grossman broadside on the gun rights group and Coakley said the attorney general “knows the laws” and has experience, which is “why she is wary of quick fixes like ‘One Gun.’”

Coakley’s campaign manager noted efforts to limit gun violence she has supported, such as closing a “gun show loophole,” banning “assault weapons” and requiring background checks for gun purchases.

“Martha has sat with the families impacted by violent crimes, and prosecuted hundreds of dangerous criminals, including cases involving gun violence," Foley said.

The Medford Democrat was attending the funeral of Boston Police Officer Dennis Simmonds midday Thursday, according to her campaign, and had not asked Grossman to schedule the debate for another time when she was available.

Grossman and Wallace disagreed on the efficacy of a 1998 gun law, as each cited different statistics – Grossman using total gun fatalities to show a positive public safety impact, and Wallace using gun homicides to demonstrate the law has been detrimental to public safety.

The Newton Democrat said limiting gun purchases to one-per-month would limit “straw purchases” of firearms in bulk, while Wallace said gun owners already endure onerous regulations and there is no evidence of straw purchasing in Massachusetts.

Grossman also critiqued Coakley’s prior comments to the News Service that she is unsure whether the attorney general’s office has the ability to require new guns are installed with fingerprint trigger locks. In the race to succeed Coakley as attorney general, Democrat Warren Tolman has asserted the AG has that power while his Democratic rival Maura Healey has said she doesn’t see the authority. Grossman agrees with Tolman.

The treasurer has previously faulted Coakley from a liberal perspective on stances she has taken on immigration and criminal justice, and Kayyem has knocked Coakley for not supporting comprehensive sexual education.

After the debate, Wallace told reporters that “civil rights” should have the benefit of the doubt in the debate over gun laws, and Grossman said civil liberties and his gun proposals “can coexist comfortably.”